Severed on Nintendo Switch Can Only Be Played in Handheld Mode

DrinkBox's Vita game is still a handheld title on Switch.

By
Jonathon Dornbush

DrinkBox Studios' Severed, originally released on the PlayStation Vita, is debuting on the Nintendo Switch this week. But those downloading it to Nintendo's latest system should be advised the game is only available to play in handheld mode.

Testing out Severed on Switch, IGN discovered that, when the Switch is docked, a warning telling the player "This game is only played in handheld mode," as seen below:

Severed on Switch warning

IGN reached out to DrinkBox regarding the decision to make the game only playable in handheld mode. A representative for the studio said while the company did test out motion controls to make the game playable when docked, they "were really unhappy with the results."

"Severed was initially designed as a touch-screen game," a representative for DrinkBox said. We did do some experiments with motion controls early on in development, but were really unhappy with the results. For the experience to work well, players need to swipe with precision, and need to be able to see what they are touching. Even simple things like slashing specific pots to break them can become extremely annoying to do when using motion controls or an on-screen cursor."

DrinkBox is also going to update the game's eShop description on the Nintendo Switch store page to better emphasize that the game is playable in handheld mode only.